Idiot Box

Deal or No Deal?

Nets ax shows

By Devin D. O’Leary

Clear the decks, people, it’s upfront season! In case you’re unfamiliar with the term, it’s that nerve-wracking time of year when the broadcast television networks start greenlighting pilots for the fall season, hammer out their schedules and decide what will and will not be returning in 2007-08.

Currently, pilots are still being cast, shot and (in many cases) recast and reshot. Only a small percentage of those pilots will get on the air as full TV series. But the networks have already made a few decisions about shows that are currently on their schedules. Will your favorites live to see another season?

NBC--The Peacock Network, desperately trying to repair its lost legacy, has only jettisoned “Kidnapped” so far. On the bubble are “1 vs. 100,” “20 Good Years” (that’s gone), “30 Rock” (that had better stick around), “Andy Barker, P.I.,” “The Black Donnellys,” “Crossing Jordan,” “Dateline” (the show will stick around, the only question is how many nightly slots will it be filling?), “Deal or No Deal” (ditto), “Friday Night Lights,” “Grease: You’re the One That I Want,” “Identity,” “Law & Order,” “Law & Order: Criminal Intent,” “Medium,” “Raines,” “Scrubs” and “Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip.”